farsi valere

Italian

Etymology

Literally, “to make oneself valued”.

Verb

fàrsi valere (first-person singular present mi fàccio valere, first-person singular past historic mi féci valere, past participle fàtto valere, first-person singular imperfect mi facévo valere, second-person singular imperative fàtti valere)

1. to assert oneself; to put one's foot down

   Synonym: farsi rispettare

   • 2020, Barack Obama, chapter 22, in Chicca Galli, Paolo Lucca, Giuseppe Maugeri, transl., Una terra promessa [A Promised Land], Garzanti Libri:

     Larry ha respinto la mia proposta in presenza del presidente perché pensava che fosse ancora incompleta o perché non mi sono fatta valere abbastanza?

     Did Larry dismiss my proposal in front of the president because he thought it wasn't fully fleshed out, or was it because I wasn't assertive enough?

     (literally, “Did Larry reject my proposal in the presence of the president because he thought it was still incomplete or because I didn't assert myself enough?”)